Everyone Has a Plan
Two days before the Wednesday set for Blow's transfer, Redprine and Beatrice finished confirming the trap exactly as they had planned it in council with the others, and returned to an abandoned building on Scampia Street.
"Boss! Haller's meeting us on this side, right?"
"Yeah. He's coming with the vessel. We're to meet right out front."
"Days of work, and he finally pulled it off?"
"Yeah. The moment we meet the vessel, we bind her so she can't use magic."
"Right, right. We can burn what's left of the mana stones."
Redprine held one up as she spoke. Crimson letters flickered uneasily across the dark gray stone, and Beatrice, having seen as much, blew out a stream of smoke and lifted one corner of her mouth.
"If the vessel throws a fit, all the better. Call it a dress rehearsal for Wednesday."
"That's fair! If it comes to that, can I rough her up a little on the side?"
"No. You don't damage the body."
"So as long as the body stays intact, I'm free?"
"Yeah. Do as you like. That's if she resists, of course."
"Then I hope she does. Our dear Hervena."
Redprine laughed, low and unpleasant, and the two of them stepped out of the abandoned building.
Scampia Street lay bleak beneath not a single light, and now and then the drunken ravings of nameless strangers rose and fell along it.
"This really isn't a place to linger."
Redprine was muttering as much when, far off, a stooped man with a gloomy air came into view, and behind him Hervena, purple-haired.
A face Redprine knew well, and one she was glad to see. She greeted Hervena with a bright smile.
"Hel-lo, Hervena Westriver."
"Redprine Blueos."
"You're supposed to add senior."
"I don't think we're that close."
"Listen to that mouth. But that's exactly why I like you."
She moved to link arms. Hervena wanted none of it. Face gone stiff, she shook the hand off.
"Playing hard to get."
"N-now, now, let's not do that. Why don't we go inside and talk? D-do you have any idea how hard I worked to bring her here?"
"Sure, why not! The night's plenty long! Boss! Shall we head in?"
Beatrice, watching from a step away, gave the barest nod, then flicked her cheroot to the ground.
"Hervena, was it? Welcome to our side."
"Whether I cross over depends on what you show me tonight, and what you tell me."
"Fine. Easier on us that way."
"And don't forget to guarantee the young master's safety."
"We'll see to it."
"What's this, Hervena? Since when have you followed Blow Deblique like that, huh?"
Redprine was used to the Hervena who used to fly into a fit the moment anyone mentioned Blow, and she tilted her head. Hervena glared at her, then simply clamped her mouth shut.
"This bitch has been acting precious since we got here."
"Haah. I should have ground you under my heel at least once before you got suspended."
"Watch your mouth when you talk to your senior."
Redprine's eyes flared. Hervena met the glare without giving an inch. Beatrice, standing between them, offered Hervena a sinister smile.
"We're going to our hideout, so I'll need to restrain you for a moment. Hervena Westriver."
"A mage, are you?"
"That's one word for it. Come on. Hold out your hands."
"I don't think so. Who knows what you'd do to me."
"Then there's nothing to be done."
"Nothing to be done?"
In the brief silence, Redprine was already constructing a magic circle, a thin smile on her lips. But by then Hervena had already tapped the potion bottle at her waist.
And then—
"Gyaaah!"
Haller and Redprine lost their footing and screamed. Blood poured from one thigh of each of them where they had fallen. Beatrice began a magic circle of her own, but Hervena only smiled, unhurried, as if she had been waiting for exactly that.
⟨ Inverse Operation: Cancel ⟩
Beatrice's white circle bled purple and shattered. Out of the dark a jet of water punched clean through her shoulder.
"Kh—!"
Her groan rang down the alley, and at last Lisleia stepped out of the darkness.
A monster. This is the person I said I'd catch?
The moment their eyes met, the color drained from Beatrice's face. Expressionless, Lisleia snapped her fingers. Spheres of water formed in the air and sealed the three of them away, each apart from the others.
"Kid. You could have just let yourself get caught. I was curious how you'd come out."
"I did it just in case."
"You're a coward, aren't you?"
"......"
"That's what comes of a war ending too long ago."
Saying so, Lisleia glanced at the three thrashing in the water and dispersed the sphere that held Haller.
"Hah... hah..."
"Lead the way. To wherever you meant to take her."
"If you think I'll tell you that, you're mis—"
"I'll give you credit for the nerve."
With that, she drove a jet of water through each of his shoulders. Agony hit all at once. Haller clutched the wounds and began to roll on the ground.
"Lead."
"Kgh..."
"Good grit. Shall we start on the shins, then? I think ice magic would make the better beating. And then the bone fragments..."
"I-I'll lead you..."
"Already? Well. Nothing to be done about that."
Lisleia smiled and stroked his head. Her left hand flared, and the wound in Haller's thigh knit itself closed.
"You first."
They followed the limping Haller into the abandoned building just ahead. The moment they entered the room, Lisleia reshaped the spheres into shackles, hung the captives from the ceiling, and took one of the scattered chairs.
"Gathering in a place as dank as you are. So. Which of the three feels like talking to me?"
The other two shook, eyes hollow. Redprine, by contrast, kept letting out empty little laughs in Lisleia's direction. The attitude was refreshing. Lisleia rose, stood before her, and drew a finger along her jaw.
"Eyes just like a snake's."
"Heh... heheheh..."
"A bit off in the head, this one? Kid, am I right?"
"She's famous. For that."
"Well, fixing this sort of thing is simple."
Is there some magic I don't know?
Interest stirred. Hervena looked that way, curious. Lisleia opened three more holes in Redprine's side.
"Gyaaaaaah—!"
"Kid. How was that? Learn anything?"
"Yes."
"And if she still won't open her eyes nicely, what then?"
"You make a few more holes."
"Well, well. You do learn fast."
Lisleia laughed, bright and ringing, sat, and crossed her legs. She summoned a body of water in the air and flicked a few tea leaves into it.
"Snake-eyes. Is this everyone who's here?"
"......"
"Fine. If you don't want to talk, don't."
"Ptoo."
Instead of an answer, Redprine spat at her.
Spitting at an archmage? She's even crazier than I thought.
Hervena swallowed dryly and stared. The spit, frozen in midair, seeped straight into Redprine's own eye.
"Ugh... fuck......"
"If you don't want to talk, say you don't want to talk. Making a person mean, aren't you?"
With that, Lisleia drew a gleaming straw from her robes, stuck it into the tea steeping in the air, and summoned a stream of water no thicker than a fingernail around Redprine's index finger. The water coiled up the finger the way a snake climbs a tree. Hervena was still wondering what she meant to do with it when Lisleia, having drawn a long sip, smiled.
Acid 1
In an instant the finger began to melt away in the exact shape of the coil. The stench and the sight left Hervena no choice but to turn her head.
"Gyaaaaaaah!"
"Hmm. Fingers left: one, two, three, four... five, six, seven, eight, nine. Nine in all?"
She said it, then looked toward Haller and toward Beatrice, who was biting her lower lip, and smiled, damp and unpleasant.
"No. Twenty-nine, isn't it?"
"Hhhk..."
Tears spilled from Haller's terrified eyes. Lisleia took another pull of tea and shifted her gaze to Hervena, who was working hard to keep her face composed.
"Kid. Want to learn a spell?"
"Right now?"
"Mm. Right now. First you shape the water, and then—"
While Redprine thrashed, Lisleia explained the magic. Haller, shaking head to toe, suddenly shouted at her.
"I-if you're going to kill me, then kill me!!"
"We're in the middle of a lesson!"
Lisleia flicked her fingers again, and streams of water stitched Haller's mouth shut.
"Mmph— mmmph!"
"All right, kid. Make a strand of water and think of twisting it. See that white-haired girl? Put it on her middle finger. The way I did."
"Yes."
A violet circle formed at Beatrice's finger, and a stream of water began to climb it. Beatrice looked down, rigid with fear. As if she were already beneath notice, Lisleia laughed, bright and clear, and stroked Hervena's hair.
"Ooh! Far too good for a first try! Next, the feeling of changing the water's concentration, just a little—"
"Yes..."
"Picture something like vinegar."
The stream began to sting. Beatrice fought to hold in the groan forcing its way out. It did not satisfy Lisleia. She let out a faint, displeased sigh and added one more word for Hervena.
"Or you could just raise the temperature. I hear you've a talent for fire magic. Let's see... Hervena-Style Heating 1 ought to do. Or shall we call it Caught in the Act of Stealing White Flame's Disciple?"
"......"
Unsure what answer she was meant to give, Hervena quietly heated the water wrapped around Beatrice's hand. The sound of flesh sizzling and burning spread through the room.
"Nngh..."
"Mm, Hervena. You're heating it too slowly. That won't do."
"Yes."
"I'll let you try again, so do it properly. At that level I can restore it right away."
And she restored Beatrice's finger. Seeing it made whole, Beatrice—and Haller, watching—could only tremble.
This never ends, does it?
"All right. This time, my demonstration—"
"There are three more!"
Beatrice screamed, soaked in terror. Redprine's brow, still locked around the pain of her melted index finger, pinched tight. Lisleia yawned and propped her chin on one hand, looking as if the whole affair were a terrible bother.
"Then call them here."
"Telling you should have been enough! And b-betrayal on top of—"
"I'll say it again. Not doing it is your freedom. Come on, let's try once more. Fingers vanish too easily, Hervena. How about the wrist?"
"Mmph— mmmmph—"
The moment the words left her, Haller thrashed. Lisleia released the magic on his mouth.
"I'll call them. Please, just let me do it that way!"
"Hm? Really?"
"Just let me live."
"That we'll think about after you've called them. How are you going to do it?"
"If I send a signal..."
"Mm. Send it, then. Now."
"I-I have to use magic."
"You want me to undo the restraint. Is that it?"
She released him. He collapsed flat on the floor and tried to summon a different circle.
"Do whatever you like. Follow your heart."
Her voice seemed to pass over the whole of his mind, and he could not bring himself to try. A short while later, a gray flash burst. By then Lisleia was rinsing a cup from the table with water and holding it out toward Hervena.
"Kid. Want a cup of tea?"
"No."
"It's good."
"Then... I'll have some."
"Hey. You, the one who looks like his back hurts. Want a cup too?"
"......"
"Right. There's a hole in your mouth, so you couldn't drink it anyway."
Smiling as she said it, Lisleia sprinkled tea leaves into Hervena's cup and stretched.
After Lisleia and Marta appeared, Blow sat in an interrogation room hastily assembled inside city hall, listening, and looked toward Lisleia with his breath held tight. She explained in detail how she had caught them and made them talk. It was so vivid that some of the city officials seated nearby clutched their stomachs, claimed they felt sick, and bolted outside. Watching them go, Lisleia let out a thin sigh and shook her head, as if the sight were pathetic.
"I keep saying the war's been over too long. Isn't that right, kid?"
"Yes. I think so too."
"Tsk. And these are the people handling the nation's business."
Clicking her tongue, she began to tend her nails. Hervena sat immediately beside her. On the diagonal were people from city hall and the Magic Bureau, and opposite sat Blow, Marta, Yulia, and Mnevoir. Aside from Hervena, who answered now and then, and Getier, who was taking the record, no one could easily bring themselves to speak.
"So once I had the rest tied up as well and we took turns burning about ten fingers apiece, it all came pouring out."
"I see."
"Mm. None of them had any grit at all. Back in the day we'd at least get as far as the toes."
"......"
"Thanks to that, Hervena's heating magic got left unfinished. Sorry. I should have taught it to you properly."
"I'll study the rest on my own."
"Oh? Then next time let's move on to something harder."
Her voice was cheerful. The room was as quiet as if someone had thrown water over it. Getier, who had been busily setting down everything she said, cleared his throat and addressed her with care.
"Lady Lisleia, then the one behind this... perhaps..."
The hand tending her nails stopped.